A kiss that made national news almost three years ago will have a lasting effect on El Paso.

The group of gay men kicked out of a Chico's Tacos restaurant have settled a lawsuit with the city of El Paso after the city agreed to improve anti-discrimination training for police, the group's lawyers said.

The Chico's Tacos incident gained national attention when a police officer allegedly threatened to arrest five gay men for "homosexual conduct" after two of the men kissed and the group was kicked out of the Chico's Tacos on Montwood Drive in 2009.

Lawyers with Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project representing the group known as the "Chico's Five" said the lawsuit was dropped after the city agreed to have annual extensive training for police on El Paso's existing anti-discrimination ordinance.

El Paso has an ordinance prohibiting restaurants and other public places from refusing service on the basis of sexual orientation.

The police officer involved at Chico's Tacos had threatened to arrest the men under an old Texas law against homosexual conduct that was declared unconstitutional in 2003.

Amin Alehashem, one of the group's lawyers, said the lawsuit was never about money and there was no financial settlement. He said the case will help make El Paso more inclusive for the gay and lesbian community.

"All they ever wanted was for the police to acknowledge they had that right (to be in the restaurant) and formally train their officers on the anti-discrimination ordinance," Alehashem said.

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Lawyers said that Chico's Tacos had been previously dropped from the lawsuit and Bradford All American Security Inc., which provided security for the restaurant, agreed to train its employees in sensitivity toward the gay community.

Representatives for the city and Police Department could not comment because the case has not been formally settled.

Chico's Tacos restaurants are a popular El Paso late-night spot famous for their sauce-soaked, cheese-covered rolled tacos.

On June 29, 2009, five men were confronted by a restaurant security guard after two of the men gave each other a peck on the lips. The guard, Marco Nava, called 911.

"There are two men eating here, and they're kissing. They are homosexuals. I approached them and told them that they couldn't be kissing here because there are children here. They were kissing on the lips," Nava said in a recorded 911 call.

The restaurant and the security company had claimed the group was asked to leave because its members were being aggressive and confrontational and bothered other customers, though that was not mentioned in the guard's 911 call.

Carlos Diaz de Leon, one of the five men, also called 911 and said he and his friends were the victims of discrimination.

When police arrived, an officer allegedly told Diaz de Leon that it was against the law for two men to kiss in public and that they could be arrested "for that kind of behavior," according to the lawsuit filed in 2010.

"We want every gay or lesbian person in this community to know that if they are discriminated against or thrown out of restaurants for their sexual orientation, they can call the police to enforce our local ordinances without fear of getting arrested," Diaz de Leon said in a statement about the settlement.

The group's lawyers said that a major problem was that the police at the scene and in subsequent comments made by police officials apparently did not know about the city's anti-discrimination ordinance.

Jed Untereker, a lawyer with the Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project, said the settlement will ensure that El Paso is more inclusive.

The El Paso branch of the gay-rights group Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) was pleased to learn that police would undergo sensitivity training.

"If all taxpayers are paying the Police Department's salary, then all the residents deserve to be treated fairly and with equity as is written in the El Paso municipal code," PFLAG El Paso said in a statement.

"We celebrate the five young men who stood up for the LGBT community in El Paso," the statement continued. "In this country, love should not be a factor in determining your value or in determining where one can eat their tacos."

Daniel Borunda may be reached at dborunda@elpasotimes.com; 546-6102. Follow him on Twitter @BorundaDaniel.

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